# SOP TEMPLATE — THE 5-LAYER METHOD
### by A10TION Digital — a10tion.digital
*One process, one afternoon. Fill every bracket. Don't polish — ship.*

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## LAYER 1 — THE ONE-LINER (5 min)
**This process turns** [starting condition] **into** [finished outcome] **within** [time].

> Example: "Turns a signed proposal into a scheduled kickoff within 48 hours."

## LAYER 2 — THE TRIGGER MAP (15 min)
- **Starting event:** [what kicks this off]
- **Signal arrives at:** [inbox / form / phone / channel]
- **Who owns noticing:** [one name — not "the team"]
- **Must start within:** [time from trigger]

## LAYER 3 — THE RECORDING (30 min)
- [ ] Screen-record yourself doing the process ONCE, narrating out loud
- [ ] Say the micro-decisions ("I check spam here because…")
- [ ] Do NOT edit it. Link it here: [link]

## LAYER 4 — THE CHECKLIST (60 min)
*Rules: every step starts with a VERB, names its TOOL, states its CHECK. 10–20 steps. Over 30 = split into two SOPs.*

| # | Step (verb + tool) | Check (how you know it's right) |
|---|--------------------|--------------------------------|
| 1 | | |
| 2 | | |
| 3 | | |
| 4 | | |
| 5 | | |
| 6 | | |
| 7 | | |
| 8 | | |
| 9 | | |
| 10 | | |

## LAYER 5 — THE FAILURE NOTES (30 min)
*Ask whoever does this today: "What breaks?" Write the top three.*

1. **When** [common failure] **→ do** [recovery step]
2. **When** [common failure] **→ do** [recovery step]
3. **When** [common failure] **→ do** [recovery step]

**Escalate to** [name] **if** [condition that means stop and ask].

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## METADATA
- Process owner: _______
- Last updated: _______
- Tested by a newcomer on: _______ (their stumbles = your edit list)
- Review date (quarterly): _______

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